St Giles Islands (20674)
Trinidad and Tobago, Caribbean

Site overview

KBA status: confirmed

Global KBA criteria: D1a

Year of last assessment: 2007

National site name: St Giles Islands

Central coordinates: Latitude: 11.3525, Longitude: -60.5207

System: marine, terrestrial

Elevation (m): 0 to 100

Area of KBA (km²): 10.00895

Protected area coverage (%): 0.17

KBA classification: Global

Legacy site: Yes

Site details

Site description: St Giles Islands comprise one main island and several outlying rocks about one kilometer off the northeast of Tobago. The main island is roughly 29 ha of steeply sloping land rising to just over 100m. There is no habitation on the island and the topography makes such development unlikely. Seas around the island are generally rough and landing is hazardous.

Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance that meets the thresholds for at least one criterion described in the Global Standard for the Identification of KBAs.

Additional biodiversity: St. Giles Islands are one of the most important seabird breeding colonies in the southern West Indies. They host the only breeding colonies of Magnificent Frigatebirds and Red-footed Boobies in Trinidad and Tobago. Audubon’s Shearwaters, Brown Boobies, Brown Noddies and Red-billed Tropicbirds also breed in considerable numbers. Up to 80 masked boobies have recently started roosting on one of the outlying rocks. Recent counts of seabird breeding populations are well below what was previously recorded. The alarmingly low numbers recently recorded may in part be due to insufficient sampling effort as the terrain and rough seas make counting very difficult. Seabirds continue to nest at a number of minor sites around Tobago and it is likely that with a cessation of poaching, St. Giles should remain a major breeding colony. Non-bird biodiversity: The terrestrial fauna of St. Giles has not been studies but it may be similar to that of Little Tobago which houses the endemic Ocellated Gecko Gonatodes ocellatus and endemic subspecies of one lizard Bachia heteropa alleni and one snake Mastigodryas boddaerti dunni.

Delineation rationale: Mark has the shapefiles.

Habitats

Summary of habitats in KBA: The island is clothed in cactus, low scrub and a few deciduous trees up to 9m tall. The site represents a patch of the once widespread Deciduous Seasonal Forest but is highly influenced by wind exposure and the nutrients resulting from nesting seabirds.

Land use: hunting | nature conservation and research | tourism/recreation

IUCN Habitat	Coverage %	Habitat detail
Marine Intertidal	20
Marine Neritic	40
Shrubland	20
Marine Coastal/Supratidal	20

Threats

Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: There is a tradition in Tobago of eating seabirds especially at harvest festivals. Brown Boobies and Magnificent Frigatebirds are the preferred species and poachers regularly visit the islands and collect birds. Invasive species which could potentially prey on nesting seabirds (for example rats) are a potential threat. Hurricanes are rare but pose a significant threat especially if the frequency and severity increases with climate change.

Additional information